Economist: 'Signs of house sales recovery should not blind us to real problems'

A chief economist at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has said that the UK will see an increase in house sales, "its best level since 2007."

Simon Rubinsohn, RICS chief economist, said:

The amount of sales going through should see an increase across the country, climbing to its best level since 2007, as the funding for lending scheme helps boost the availability of mortgage finance.

But these tentative signs of recovery in the sales market should not blind us to the very real problems that still exist.

Even with the funding for lending scheme and some other government policies beginning to be felt in the mortgage market, many first-time buyers will continue to find it difficult to secure a sufficiently large loan to take an initial step on the housing market.